Ablation catheters using RF (radio frequency) energy are known. A typical ablation catheter has electrodes located at the catheter tip and delivers RF energy to ablate selected tissue areas in a patient. For example, patients with arrhythmia experience irregular heart beats caused by arrhythmogenic electrical signals generated in cardiac tissues. Such patients may be treated by ablating those cardiac tissues that generate such unintended electrical signals with RF energy. With the help of sensing and mapping tools, an electrophysiologist can determine the region of cardiac tissue targeted for ablation. Once determined, a catheter tip having one or more electrodes is positioned over the targeted tissue. Then, the user sends RF energy from the generator to the electrodes, creating sufficient heat to damage the targeted tissue. By damaging and scarring the targeted tissue, aberrant electrical signal generation or transmission is interrupted.
Application of curative energy is currently performed endocardially with the objective of reaching the epicardium to create a fully transmural lesion. This is important in all arrhythmias especially during ablation for atrial fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia. In the former case, transmural lesions are required to create conduction block to isolate relevant structures while in the latter case the arrhythmogenic substrate is located often in the epicardial layer of ventricular walls. Delivery of the energy is limited by the increase of temperature at the interface between catheter tip and endocardial surface and there is a good correlation between thrombus formation and high temperature. A temperature sensor is typically provided near the tip of the catheter so the user may monitor the operating temperature to ensure that overheating does not occur in the catheter tip and in the surrounding tissues. One known solution to prevent overheating is by having an irrigation system embedded within the catheter. In brief, a typical irrigation system includes a delivery lumen inside of the catheter body to supply cooling fluid, such a saline, from a pump to the catheter tip. An irrigation system may internally irrigate the catheter tip, where the cooling fluid circulates within the catheter tip. Another type of irrigation system delivers cooling fluid from within the catheter tip to the outside of the catheter tip which also cools the surrounding tissues. Catheters with an irrigated tip allow the delivery of more energy with a lower temperature at the tissue/catheter interface thus minimizing thrombus formation while maximizing deep lesion creation in the tissue. Despite numerous desirable properties, however, known irrigated catheters have several disadvantages. For example, because the temperature of the catheter tip region can vary depending on factors such as its proximity to an electrode and irrigation duct, it is difficult to monitor and ensure that all heated surfaces along the catheter tip are adequately cooled. Often the catheter tip is positioned not perpendicularly to the tissue but tangentially to increase the tip/tissue contact area as for example during ablation of the inferior part of the right sided pulmonary vein. In this situation and in every other situation where a tip side/tissue contact is required, a uniform cooling of the catheter tip would further reduce thrombus formation while allowing development of larger electrodes to more efficiently deliver energy for ablation. In this way the entire electrode surface can be used to ablate a pathological tissue without overheating any portion of the catheter tip and causing thrombus formation.
Thus, there is still a need for irrigated ablation catheter where the irrigation pattern is controlled to provide desired relative uniform cooling to the catheter tip and/or surrounding tissues.
All referenced patents, applications and literatures are incorporated herein by which is incorporated by reference herein is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply. The contemplated embodiments may seek to satisfy one or more of the above-mentioned desire. Although the present invention may obviate one or more of the above-mentioned desires, it should be understood that some aspects of the invention might not necessarily obviate them.